Amazon to boost Midlands economy (AUDIO)

Seattle-based online retail giant Amazon.com will locate a one million square foot distribution center in the town of Cayce, just outside of Columbia.

Company officials say the center will bring over 1,200 jobs to the area by the end of 2013. The company wants to start construction of the new $40 million dollar facility next month. It should be completed by December of next year.

University of South Carolina Business professor Dr. Manoj Malhotra says for Amazon the 90 acre location with interstate highway access is ideal. Malhotra says Amazon’s decision will help attract other businesses to the burgeoning industrial park area.

Malhotra says BMW and Boeing are able to attract other industries to the state because those major manufacturers use the fabricated parts and other accessories that the smaller industries produce. Although Amazon is not an industry that produces a tangible product, it still can help attract other industries to the Midlands area in an intangible way.

Amazon officials say a bulk of the jobs will be filled locally, and Malhotra says that is especially good news for those seeking employment in the area during these times of high unemployment. Amazon officials indicate during peak times like the Christmas season, the company may hire as many as 2,500 temporary workers to augment the efforts of its more than 1,200 permanent employees.